In 2024, AI became a hot topic. According to Google Trends, the popularity of the search term "AI" increased by 19% from January 2023 to January 2024 and then exploded by an additional 71% from then to now, reaching its peak popularity.
From my perspective, every headline, post, and tool demo mentioned AI and machine learning. I was intrigued, but I wasn't ready to jump in just yet.
Eventually, I downloaded ChatGPT and started to fiddle. Our president kept tossing out ideas in leadership meetings, such as using AI to extract product requirements from initial sales inquiries. The results were decent but left a lot to be desired. However, even with its quirks, I could see the potential.
Sometime in 2025, my little spark turned into a fire. I don't know exactly when the shift happened. It may have happened when I joined the Bureau of Digital's AI & Automation Slack group and saw my colleagues' curiosity and passion. It could have happened as I listened to The Artificial Intelligence Show podcast, where each episode laid bare the speed at which AI was transforming business.
Whatever it was, I was lit up. I was ready.
... But I had no roadmap.
Where Do You Start?
I asked around. (I even asked GPT!)
There was no consensus. Some folks were going full YOLO and trying every tool without concern for governance. That approach didn’t sit right with me or align with our company’s values around security, reliability, and sustainability.
On the flipside, some were staunchly opposed to the use of AI in any capacity. That also seemed like the wrong route. AI is here, whether we like it or not. At the very least, we need to understand it.
So, I did what any COO would do: I made a plan. I pitched it to our leadership team as an “experiment with guardrails.”
Internal Structure: Build the Right Foundations
Before using any of these tools, we wanted to make sure we were doing so responsibly and safely.
I partnered with our Director of Engineering, Dan Ivovich, to draft a high-level Acceptable Use Policy. This wasn’t meant to cover every edge case; it was a North Star to guide how we use AI tools thoughtfully, knowing the landscape is changing fast. (Happy to share it... just ask!)
We also updated our Service Agreement to disclose that we may incorporate AI tools into client work. Transparency builds trust and prevents misunderstanding.
Our clients were grateful for the heads-up, and many welcomed the potential for increased efficiency and ROI.
Creating Space: The Tiger Team
Once we had the proper guidelines in place, we assembled the SmartLogic AI Tiger Team! The Tigers are a volunteer group of team members who are interested in exploring how AI can improve our work.
We weren't chasing moonshots. We simply wanted to learn through curiosity.
Each Tiger was encouraged to journal their experiments:
- What worked?
- What didn’t?
- How much time was saved?
From Play to Purpose: Introducing Tiger Missions
We met regularly to share what we learned, whether from articles or hands-on experiments with AI tools. It was a safe space to explore and grow, with a little support and no pressure.
But I quickly realized that although fun is great, we needed focus.
So we leveled up our approach. I posed two guiding questions to the team:
- Can AI tools help us maintain and modernize existing codebases more pragmatically?
- Can we build meaningful agentic applications (not in the future, but today)?
With these principles in mind, the Tigers were assigned their missions. We have some team members using AI to modernize legacy systems written in outdated JavaScript. Others are building agentic tools for client use cases.
These experiments are still underway and evolving. I'm excited to share more as we continue on this journey.
Personal Accountability: Learning by Doing
For this effort to succeed, it demanded something from me: personal commitment.
I needed to commit to this project not just because of my title, but because I can't lead if I'm not actively learning as well. I need to stay sharp, relevant, and inspired.
This commitment inspired me to enroll in Purdue’s Generative AI for Business Transformation bootcamp: a 16-week deep dive into all things AI across business domains, from software development to sales, marketing, operations, analytics, and service.
The wealth of knowledge I gained from this course has been invaluable.
Beyond the Walls: Building External Community
Internally, we were gaining momentum, and I wanted to keep that energy going by sharing what we learn with the broader community.
So I started "AI Did What?!," a monthly show-and-tell I host for the Bureau of Digital. It’s a casual, low-pressure forum where agency and consultancy peers share their personal experiences with AI.
In these sessions, I've witnessed such profound authenticity, creativity, and collaboration. It's been deeply humbling and energizing.
The Common Thread
From the bootcamp, to the Tigers, to “AI Did What?!”, I noticed a common thread: Learn by doing, and learn by sharing.
My role is to keep that momentum going by facilitating discussion and collaboration within our team, and by bringing in ideas from external conversations with peers. This continuous exchange is what keeps us learning and evolving together.
AI is brand new. The only way to understand it is to play, experiment, and explore.
If you're curious, just start. Stay open. Embrace imperfection. Keep going.
We haven’t figured it all out yet, and we don’t have to. We’re moving the needle, together.
If you’re on a similar path or not sure where to begin, I’m always happy to connect, share resources, or just chat.
This work is too important (and too exciting) not to do together.
